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The Best Bars in Baltimore

Baltimore is a city of neighborhood taverns, but its cocktail bars have found homes in old houses, alleys and hotels. The best bars in Baltimore sit in and around Old Goucher, Mount Vernon and Fells Point. Maryland rye is the state's signature spirit, and new distillers are reviving it. On West 23rd Street, Clavel Mezcaleria, a family-run mezcaleria and taqueria since 2015 and a 2024 James Beard Outstanding Bar nominee, nixtamalizes its own tortillas from Oaxacan and Pueblan corn. Dutch Courage on North Charles Street in Old Goucher stocks more than 100 gins, jenever and Old Tom included, and serves gin flights in a historic house with a back patio. Hotel Ulysses in Mount Vernon holds two: Bloom's, a velvet-booth lounge with live jazz, and The Coral Wig in the alley beside it, a rum bar for mai tais behind lanterns. In Fells Point, Doug Atwell's Southpaw on South Bond Street is a low-key corner bar for classics and Orioles games. Clavel and The Coral Wig take no reservations. These are the bars we would start with.

Browse every Baltimore barBest cocktail bars in Baltimore
  1. Clavel Mezcaleria
    Cocktail Bar

    Clavel Mezcaleria

    Clavel opened in Remington in the summer of 2015 as a taqueria and mezcaleria, founded by Lane Harlan with chef Carlos Raba nixtamalizing corn from Oaxaca and Puebla in house and a bar, directed by Dre Levon, that honors agave distillates from across Mexico and trains its team at the palenques. It takes no reservations, sells bottles to go from its Nixtamalería, and the James Beard Foundation named it an Outstanding Bar finalist in 2024.

    225 W 23rd St, Baltimore, MD 21211Mon-Sat 5pm-11pm; Sun closed
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  2. Dutch Courage
    Cocktail Bar

    Dutch Courage

    Dutch Courage calls itself a gin-centric cocktail bar in the historic Old Goucher neighborhood, with over a hundred bottles of gin on the shelf, jenever, Old Tom and barrelled gin among them, and a staff that, in its words, has you covered whether you want an adventuresome cocktail or a cold beer. Open from four to ten every day.

    2229 N Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218Kitchen Hours: 4pm-10pm Bar Hours: 4pm-11pm Sun-Thurs, 4pm-1am Fri & Sat
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  3. Bloom's
    Hotel Bar

    Bloom's

    Bloom's is the cocktail lounge of the Hotel Ulysses in Mount Vernon, described by the hotel as a chic cocktail bar where, in its words, the art of the cocktail flirts with the room: craft cocktails, nightly events and an intimate lounge atmosphere. It opens at five, Tuesday to Sunday, and runs until one on Friday and Saturday.

    2 E Read Street, Baltimore, MD 21202Tue-Thu 5pm-12am, Fri-Sat 5pm-1am, Sun 5pm-12am
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  4. Southpaw
    Cocktail Bar

    Southpaw

    A corner cocktail bar at 529 S. Bond Street in Fells Point, run by owner Doug Atwell, who wanted a low-key room for catching an Orioles game over a well-made drink. Orders are placed at the bar. The autumn list runs from the Surfer Rosa, with reposado tequila, hibiscus and blackberry, to the Old Sport, pairing rye with pineapple, coconut water and sherry, and the Café Varo of vodka, mezcal and cold brew, alongside frozen drinks and $8 house shooters. The kitchen sends out smashburgers with curly fries and a buttermilk-brined Yard Bird. In 2026 Atwell was a James Beard semifinalist for outstanding professional in cocktail service. Doors open at five Wednesday to Friday and at three on weekends; Monday and Tuesday are closed.

    529 S Bond Street, Baltimore, MD 21231Wed-Fri 5pm-12am, Sat 3pm-12am, Sun 3pm-9pm, Mon-Tue closed
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  5. The Coral Wig
    Tiki Bar

    The Coral Wig

    The Coral Wig is a cocktail bar from the creators of W.C. Harlan and Fadensonnen, set in the alley beside the Hotel Ulysses in Mount Vernon, with what it calls a dark, moody, jewel-box interior and a cocktail and spirits list inspired by the tropical rums and fruits of the Caribbean, drawn from a childhood on Nevis. Happy hour runs five to seven on weekdays, Monday is industry night, and there are no reservations.

    2 E Read Street, Baltimore, MD 21202Mon-Wed 5pm-12am, Thu-Sat 5pm-1am, Sun closed
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